C&I cover star Miranda Lambert might make ACM history Sunday evening.
The folks at VegasInsider.com have compiled a list of nearly 20 records that might be broken Sunday evening, May 17, when the 61st annual Academy of Country Music Awards are presented at 7 p.m. ET on Prime Video.
And let me throw a great big flopping prejudice right on the table: I’ll be rooting hardest for C&I cover star Miranda Lambert to do most of the demolition work during the show.
Yes, I admit it, I’m a longtime Ran Fan. Indeed, she already was a fave when I was privileged to interview her for the first time back in 2009 during the first CMA Festival I ever attended.
A few years later, I drove more than a hundred miles through snow while journeying from Houston to Dallas to interview the sensational singer-songwriter. (Granted, it wasn’t snowing when I started out on I-45 that day — but Lambert was impressed anyway.) More recently, I took unseemly delight in writing for C&I a track-by-track overview of her acclaimed 2024 album Postcards From Texas.
So I was extremely happy to hear from the VegasInsider folks a few days ago that, on Sunday, Lambert could extend her record as the most-awarded individual in the history of the ACMs, after previously winning 38 of the glittering prizes.
Here is the VegasInsider category breakdown for Miranda Lambert:
FEMALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR: Lambert could extend her record as the most awarded artist in the Female Artist of the Year category — she has won nine times in the past (2010 – 2018), so a win in 2026 would be her 10th victory.
SONG OF THE YEAR: Another opportunity for Lambert to do some serious record smashing, this time as the most awarded person in the Song of the Year category. In 2026, Lambert has a double chance to do so, since she is nominated for her collaboration with Chris Stapleton for “A Song to Sing” and Ella Langley for “Choosin’ Texas.” The Song of the Year award goes to both the artist of the song and its writers; Miranda Lambert won in the past as artist and songwriter for “Tin Man” (2018), “Automatic” (2015), “Over You” (2013), and as an artist for “The House That Built Me” (2011). Her current total in the category is seven wins.
MUSIC EVENT OF THE YEAR: Lambert could tie the record of Tim McGraw for the most wins in the Music Event of the Year category (as an artist) — McGraw won four times in the past, while Lambert won three times (2014, 2016, and 2020). So a win in 2026 would be her fourth, which would also make her the first woman to win four times in that category. But wait, there’s more: This year, she has a double chance to win since she is nominated for both “A Song to Sing” with Chris Stapleton and “Trailblazer” with Reba McEntire and Lainey Wilson.
What’s that? You do care? OK, here are a few other people on the VegasInsider handicapping list. Look closely, and you might notice a few other C&I cover stars.
